A war has broken out over the control of the ANC’s OR Tambo School of Leadership and the recent questionable Zimbabwean presidential elections are the cause for the conflict.
Sunday World learnt that the school’s leadership questioned whether ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula had the authority to direct the programmes of the institution, headed by ANC national executive committee member David Masondo.
A source close to Mbalula said he was prepared to take extreme steps if the school refused to cancel the planned academic dialogue on the recent Zimbabwe elections.
Masondo is said to be standing his ground and prepared to push back against Mbalula’s “power trip”. But the school eventually agreed to postpone the event, however a new date would soon be set, according to insiders.
Zimbabwean academic, author and publisher Dr Ibbo Mandaza, also a fervent Zanu-PF critic, was meant to headline the debate titled “The State of Democracy in the SADC Region: A Reflection on the National Elections of Zimbabwe”.
The school, which defended its autonomy, reluctantly agreed to what critics in the governing party dubbed Mbalula’s “anti-intellectualism” conduct.
But Mbalula was steadfast that the governing ANC’s solidarity with Zimbabwe’s governing Zanu-PF – which stands accused of rigging the recent polls – is non-negotiable.
The seminar, scheduled for Thursday at Wits University, was eventually called off when Mbalula drew the line in a letter instructing that the school postpone the event.
According to Mbalula’s colleagues, who did not want to be named for fear of victimisation, said the former ANCYL leader threatened disciplinary action against all those involved if he did not get his way.
The OR Tambo School of Leadership describes itself as an autonomous educational institution, established by the ANC to build the ideological, intellectual and organisational capacity of the ANC and the broader democratic movement.
But in ANC circles, those with political ambitions see the school as a platform to gain unfettered access to grassroots structures.
The school’s 19 board of directors include the chairperson, former president Kgalema Motlanthe, and Masondo.
Another source in Luthuli House said Mbalula’s protection of Zanu-PF was backed by his deputy, Nomvula Mokonyane.
On Tuesday, Mbalula and Mokonyane met with a delegation of Zanu-PF led by secretary-general Obert Mpofu.
Mbalula’s letter to Masondo, which Sunday World has seen, reads in part: “While we respect the institutional autonomy of the school, it is also true that, in the public mind, domestically and internationally, it is inextricably linked to the ANC.
“Furthermore, the lecture is billed as a collaborative effort between the school and the ANC Johannesburg region.
“This clearly constitutes an ANC platform,” he said.
He said the ANC was involved in several delicate engagements regarding the Zimbabwean situation.
“In this context, a public lecture, at this time, on what is clearly an ANC platform would complicate these initiatives.”
Mbalula went on to inform Masondo that the ANC was open to discussing the possibility of hosting the lecture in the future in a different format and platform.
Masondo declined to comment and referred questions to Luthuli House.
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